I got this knife from my seven-year-old daughter as an early Father's Day gift. It's a knife I've seen in a lot of places; hardware stores, Wal Mart, automotive stores, and in every "sporting goods" isle I can recall. It's a humble knife. It doesn't have exotic blade steel and it's not a super-grippy G-10 handle. It's just a neat $10-$15 knife. Made in the USA, this is Case's Caliber lockback. Mine is camouflage (woodland camouflage to be specific, which I like a lot more than the digital stuff) although it's also available with a plain black handle. It weighs only 0.8 ounce, and is Case's model 662. Here are the specifics...
Handle Details: The Caliber's handle is linerless, and is made of Zytel. It's 3" long and 6/16" thick, so it's pretty small. The handle is of pin construction, so there's no taking it apart or adjusting it. Just two pins to be specific; one as the blade pivot pin and one to hold the lockbar in. A lanyard hole is located in the butt, and it's big enough to put some cord or a keyring in. The handles are smooth, except for the half closest to the blade; it's textured in a checkerboard pattern. Using the knife, it's comfortable enough, but the Zytel can abrade your hand if they're on the large side (like mine). The Caliber locks open via lockback, and there's a little blade play. The play is side-to-side, and I'm not sure if all of them are like this, but it's hardly noticeable. Unlocking the blade can be a pain at times, as the lockbar is stiff. I tried lubing it and just locking and unlocking it to let it break in, but it's still pretty stiff. This might be an issue for some of you.
Blade Details: The Caliber uses Case's exclusive Tru-Sharp stainless steel. I'm not 100% what this steel is, but I'd compare it to 440B (remember that steel?) or 420 with a good heat treat; it's relativley soft. It came really sharp and I was able to put a hair-shaving edge on it, but it lost this edge quickly when introduced to some cardboard. The blade is a drop point, and is 2-1/4" long with a 1-13/16" cutting edge. It's hollow ground and is just a hair over 1/16" thick. Opening is accomplished without thumb studs or holes; it's just a nail nick. You can open the Caliber easily and one-handed with a little practice (SpyderDrop it open). Out of the package, mine had no lubrication on it and only required some Tuff Glide before it would open smoothly. There are no bushings to help smooth the opening, but they're really not necessary either.
Overall, the Case Caliber is alright. Not great, but not horrible. It will probably live in my toolbox for a while. I wouldn't pay $15 for it, but maybe $10. It's a staple in the sporting good isle of many stores, and I know a few people who would rather use one and then throw it away before they'd resharpen it. I think I'll hang on to mine, but I won't be getting another. If I were to play school teacher and grade the Caliber, I'd give it a low "C".
Handle Details: The Caliber's handle is linerless, and is made of Zytel. It's 3" long and 6/16" thick, so it's pretty small. The handle is of pin construction, so there's no taking it apart or adjusting it. Just two pins to be specific; one as the blade pivot pin and one to hold the lockbar in. A lanyard hole is located in the butt, and it's big enough to put some cord or a keyring in. The handles are smooth, except for the half closest to the blade; it's textured in a checkerboard pattern. Using the knife, it's comfortable enough, but the Zytel can abrade your hand if they're on the large side (like mine). The Caliber locks open via lockback, and there's a little blade play. The play is side-to-side, and I'm not sure if all of them are like this, but it's hardly noticeable. Unlocking the blade can be a pain at times, as the lockbar is stiff. I tried lubing it and just locking and unlocking it to let it break in, but it's still pretty stiff. This might be an issue for some of you.
Blade Details: The Caliber uses Case's exclusive Tru-Sharp stainless steel. I'm not 100% what this steel is, but I'd compare it to 440B (remember that steel?) or 420 with a good heat treat; it's relativley soft. It came really sharp and I was able to put a hair-shaving edge on it, but it lost this edge quickly when introduced to some cardboard. The blade is a drop point, and is 2-1/4" long with a 1-13/16" cutting edge. It's hollow ground and is just a hair over 1/16" thick. Opening is accomplished without thumb studs or holes; it's just a nail nick. You can open the Caliber easily and one-handed with a little practice (SpyderDrop it open). Out of the package, mine had no lubrication on it and only required some Tuff Glide before it would open smoothly. There are no bushings to help smooth the opening, but they're really not necessary either.
Overall, the Case Caliber is alright. Not great, but not horrible. It will probably live in my toolbox for a while. I wouldn't pay $15 for it, but maybe $10. It's a staple in the sporting good isle of many stores, and I know a few people who would rather use one and then throw it away before they'd resharpen it. I think I'll hang on to mine, but I won't be getting another. If I were to play school teacher and grade the Caliber, I'd give it a low "C".
